Morocco - Oued Massa

A packed three-day trip (not including travel days) recording 88 species, six of which were new and sought after.

Flights were booked with easyjet from Luton (operated by Smartlynx on the outbound leg) staying at the incredible la palmeraie de massa auberge/restaurant an hour south of Agadir, an independent guesthouse settled in amongst the Berber community where nature abounds.

Birding was concentrated around the Oued Massa area avoiding long drives focussing efforts around waterbodies and areas of steppe and coastal locations in the search for waterbirds and the enigmatic northern bald ibis.

The full list sightings is as follows (PdM indicates sightings from the auberge);

Ruddy Shelduck
Group of 20 at Oued Mass NP.

Mallard
Group of four on Oued Massa.

Shoveler
11 at Oued Massa NP.

Barbary partridge
Around a dozen on scree in the Barrage Youssef Ben Tachfine area.

Little Grebe
6 on Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze.

Moroccan Cormorant
8 at Oued Massa NP (PdM).

Grey Heron
Seen regularly in the area (PdM).

Black-crowned night heron
Only seen on the last afternoon, a group of around 25 from the auberge (PdM).

Cattle egret
Common and widespread (PdM).

Little egret
Common and widespread.

Glossy ibis
Seen infrequently but often in groups of around 30 (PdM).

Northern Bald ibis
One of the key targets, was hoping to see at least one so a group of around 200 at Sidi r'bat was simply astonishing and at such close range.

Spoonbill
A tight group of around 20 at Oued Massa NP.

Greater flamingo
A group of around 30 at Oued Massa NP.

Marsh Harrier
A male and female seen in different locations close to the auberge (PdM).

Sparrowhawk
One seen from the auberge chasing starlings (PdM).

Bonelli's eagle
The only eagle seen daily in the area (PdM).

Osprey
One at Oued Massa NP.

Kestrel
Common and widespread (PdM).

Moorhen
Four on Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze.

Coot
Six on Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze.

Black-winged stilt
At least 14 on Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze.

Stone curlew
At least 29 at Sidi r'bat.

Little ringed plover
One juvenile on Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze, and two juveniles at the Ait Iyass pool.

Ringed plover
Mostly juveniles on Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze.

Curlew sandpiper
At least four on Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze.

Dunlin
At least 40 on Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze.

Ruff
One on Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze.

Snipe
One seen on pools near Ait Iyass.

Common sandpiper
Regularly seen at multiple locations.

Green sandpiper
Two at Ait Iyass and one on Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze.

Greenshank
Two on Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze.

Redshank
Regularly seen on all waterbodies visited.

Lesser-black backed gull
Common along coast at Sidi r'bat.

Yellow-legged gull
Common along coast at Sidi r'bat.

Little tern
Juvenile along Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze and at Oued Massa NP.

Caspian tern
Two flew over Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze.

Black-bellied sandgrouse
Small groups seen flying over while en route to Barrage Youssef Ben Tachfine.

Sandwich tern
Seen at Sidi r'bat.

Feral pigeon
Common and widespread (PdM).

Collared dove
Common and widespread (PdM).

Turtle dove
Seen regularly including a group of around 15 (PdM).

Laughing dove
Common and widespread (PdM).

Cuckoo
One seen flying close to the auberge (PdM).

Little Owl
One seen along road to Oued Massa NP.

Common Swift
Just two individuals seen (PdM).

Little swift
Five seen over a nest site around 1 km north of the auberge (PdM).

Bee-eater
One flying overhead and calling at 'mini-Sahara'.

Hoopoe
Seen regularly particularly around the auberge (PdM).

Desert lark
Up to three at Barrage Youssef Ben Tachfine.

Thekla lark
Common and widespread (PdM).

Brown-throated martin (plain martin)
First seen on Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze with two there - further sightings over pool at Ait Iyass.

Sand martin
Plenty of passage birds particularly over Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze.

Swallow
Plenty passing through on migration.

Red-rumped swallow
One seen over Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze, and one from the auberge (PdM).

Yellow wagtail
Common around Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze with at least two different races seen.

White wagtail
Seen around Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze.

Common bulbul
Common and widespread (PdM).

Nightingale
Two seen in scrub on Oued Massa at champs d'Aghorimze.

Common redstart
Frequently seen in scrub behind the auberge (PdM).

Moussier's redstart
An obvious target but hadn't anticipated how common and widespread they are in this area. Seen first from the room window at the auberge and then subsequently at every location visited. Stunning birds (PdM).